Plasma Cutter
The 211-V Plasma Cutter, referred also as the "Plasma Cutter" or simply "the Cutter", is a purpose-built, hand-portable mineral cutter manufactured by Schofield Tools. The Plasma Cutter is one of the miner's primary tools of trade, offering unrivaled reliability in even the most hostile of work environments. Design Details The Plasma Cutter delivers a cohesive pulse-stream or "bolt" of ionized plasma medium when fired.It is capable of firing vertically (primary firing mode) and horizontally (secondary firing mode). The Plasma Cutter is very accurate, utilizing three blue laser reticules to indicate the desired cutting plane. On impact with the target, bolt cohesion fails frontward first, penetrating the target with a focused jet of superheated matter. This causes intense localized sheer effects as well as a tunneling thermal expansion. When used as designed upon brittle, frozen rocks with faults it can conceivably split them open in one or two shots in skilled hands. Against pliable targets, however, impact will cause minimal damaging and thermal expansion will not so much cut as stress the area around the impact site, sometimes requiring several consecutive hits with the un-upgraded tool. Still, when presented with a less than effective alternative against dense organic matter, the 211-V Plasma Cutter retains its utility. It appears to come in many variants, such as a "tissue laser", as Isaac comes across one mounted on an arm clearly intended for surgical use, in the first chapter of Dead Space 2. In Dead Space 2 the Plasma Cutter has a "Special" upgrade mode that will cause Plasma Cutter shots to ignite targets and cause them to burn for several seconds. Variants *Forged Plasma Cutter (10% damage bonus, reload speed 5%) *Agility Plasma Cutter (5% reload speed, firing speed 5%) *Heavy Damage Plasma Cutter (Increased Damage) *Astronaut Plasma Cutter *Elite Plasma Cutter *Obsidian Plasma Cutter *Military Plasma Cutter *Pedestrian Plasma Cutter *Scorpion Plasma Cutter *Speed Kills Plasma Cutter Ammunition The Plasma Cutter utilizes variable-capacity cartriges called Plasma Energy as its ammunition which is capable of cutting down hard, mineral ladden rocks in mining operations. Though seeming to only contain stored energy in them, plasma is in fact highly ionized matter, so either the cartridge is a combination battery/plasma medium, or the Cutter itself contains a resevior of usable material to carry the ion charge. Plasma Energy for the Plasma Cutter can be purchased in the Store for 1,200 credits for six rounds. Combat Tips * The Plasma Cutter is the player's staple weapon for the early parts of the game, and should be considered the player's trusty standby. It is recommended to keep at least a few spare full cartridges of ammunition (which consists of 25 rounds) or more for those situations where the player may run out of ammo for their other weapons. Keep the Plasma Cutter loaded and ready at all times. * Using Stasis to slow down Necromorphs makes it easier to quickly use the Cutter to sever their limbs. * The bolt fired from the Plasma Cutter travels almost instantly towards its target, making the Plasma Cutter useful for engaging far-off and/or fast-moving enemies such as Exploders, Slashers, and Twitchers. However, the ammunition delivers virtually no splash damage, making it ineffective against Swarmers. * Being one of the most precise weapons in the game also requires that the handler be steady and in control when aiming it. Remain calm, and line up your shots because there is no such thing as an accidental hit. * It's very useful against a Drag Tentacle so change your weapon as quickly as possible when faced with such. Appearances *''Dead Space: Martyr'' *''Dead Space: ExtractionThe weapon appears in ''Dead Space: Extraction and functions in much the same way as it does in Dead Space. Both Nathan McNeill and Gabe Weller are able to use it. *''Dead Space'' *''Dead Space: Aftermath'' *''Dead Space (mobile)'' *''Dead Space: Ignition'' *''Dead Space 2'' Trivia * Finishing the first Dead Space and using only the Plasma Cutter will unlock the "One Gun" Trophy/Achievement. Those attempting to unlock the achievement should use Stasis extensively in crowded situations as the Plasma cutter is not a suitable weapon for crowd control, even when fully upgraded. * Isaac is shown wielding the Plasma Cutter in most of the promotional material for Dead Space and Dead Space 2. It appears to be Isaac's main weapon of choice while fighting the Necromorphs. * The Plasma Cutter is most likely supposed to be used like a nail gun (holding the cutter against the object you want to cut) as firing it around carelessly would be dangerous around other workers. * The new reload animation for the Plasma Cutter in Dead Space 2 ejects the spent battery, much like the M1 Garand rifle's en-bloc clip. *The Plasma Cutter from DS1 and DS2 is believed to be able to weld metal objects together as well as cut rock and flesh apart. *The weapon is essentially the "handgun" of Dead Space, being held and used in a similar manner by Isaac. * This weapon is also included with two of the three Isaac Clarke action figures. * Isaac holds the Plasma Cutter with one hand, yet has a very steady aim. This is could mean that he has used one before, or because it is probably very lightweight. It is also possible that due to the Cutter being a directed energy weapon it has low recoil. He holds it with two hands when walking, and in Dead Space 2 he holds it with two hands the entire time. * In Dead Space: Extraction the primary firing mode is horizontally and the secondary firing mode is vertically. * In the original Dead Space, the crosshairs that the Plasma Cutter used would get larger or smaller when it come into contact with walls, the environment, and Necromorphs, probably to make the game more realistic. The crosshairs in Dead Space 2 are static to the center of the screen, though this can be changed in the options menu. * During gameplay if the player is idle, Isaac will do several poses with the Plasma Cutter such as holding it with both hands and pointing it in several directions. * The Plasma Cutter is one of the few one-handed weapons Isaac can use, the others being the Rivet Gun, and DS2's Ripper and Flamethrower. * The Plasma Cutter appears in Dead Space: Martyr, though it is implied to be much bigger than the Plasma Cutter in the games, as it takes two hands to operate and it weighs Altman down considerably when swimming, although this may be because it was an older version of the Plasma Cutter. * The new Plasma Cutter was not an official tool, but jury-rigged by Isaac on the fly by combining a medical stationary tissue laser (presumably used at much lower levels to not completely cut through the patient, and computer controlled to further make it safe for surgical use) and his previously acquired Flashlight. * If the player keeps their save file from the original Dead Space, they unlock the original Plasma Cutter for the single player campaign in Dead Space 2. * The old Plasma Cutter from the original Dead Space makes a return in Dead Space 2 going by the name of the "Refurbished Plasma Cutter" with the cost of 0 credits if Dead Space has been installed. You acquire it from the first store you pass in game. * In Dead Space 2 it gains the ability to light enemies on fire once the special upgrade slot has been filled. This effect seems to be far less noticeable when dismembering compared to shots to torsos/body. * Both "Refurbished Plasma Cutter" and "New Plasma Cutter" have the same upgrade path. You can only upgrade one, but it affects both Cutters. * During the scene in Dead Space 2 where Isaac first meets Ellie, Ellie can be seen carrying and extensively using a Plasma Cutter of the same make and model as the one used by Isaac in the first game. * The Collectors edition of Dead Space 2 comes with a comically small version of the Plasma Cutter with 3 LED lights to represent its trademark crosshair. * The Forged Plasma Cutter from the Dead Space 2 DLC is extremely useful on higher difficulty settings, as it's 10% higher damage (which comes out to 19.8 damage/shot on a fully upgraded model) allows Isaac to more easily dismember Necromorphs while using less ammo. * In Dead Space 2, Isaac now aims the Plasma Cutter with two hands. * An older version of the Plasma Cutter required powering down before it could be switched to horizontal or vertical mode. * Considering that it takes seconds to jury-rig the new Plasma Cutter, technology in the Dead Space universe must be quite modular and require only basic technical know-how to operate. *In Dead Space Aftermath during Nolan Stross's chapter, he uses a weapon with a similar appearance to the Plasma Cutter. *With the damage upgrades maxed, the Plasma Cutter becomes a legitimate arc wielder, although not for traditional electricity, but plasma instead. If one looks to the left immediately after shooting they can see the train from the gun all the way to the intended target is a bolt of ionized energy (plasma), which is what lightning is composed of (not completely, but essentially.) *In the PC version of Dead Space 2, the plasma cutter always resets to vertical mode when you die and go back to your checkpoint. *Despite the Refurbished Plasma Cutter being a bonus, Isaac is shown using it in most media, rather than the cobbled together one that he seems to canonocically use. *During the sequence in Dead Space 2 where you fly after the other half of the tram near the end of Chapter 2, once you get back into the tram, the Plasma Cutter will always be automatically equipped, no matter what weapon you had beforehand. (Only if you have the Plasma cutter in one of the four slots.) Gallery File:Plasma_cutter_DS2.jpg|DS2 version cobbled together from a flashlight and a surgical plasma cutter. File:Agility_cutter.jpg|Agility Plasma Cutter with a matching Agility Advanced RIG File:Forged_cutter.jpg|Forged Plasma Cutter with a matching Forged Engineering RIG File:Plasma_cutter2_DS2.jpg File:Poster secure tools download 090808.jpg|A Plasma Cutter poster aboard the Ishimura. File:PlasmaCutterSchematic.jpg|Disassembly view of the 211-V Plasma Cutter. File:Plasma Cutter.jpg|Isaac wielding the Plasma Cutter in Dead Space. File:-2054319843.jpg|A holographic image of the Plasma Energy, the ammunition of the Plasma Cutter. TROP042.png|The "Tool Time" achievement/trophy File:DS2 - Plasma Cutter Schematics.jpg|Disassembly view of the Plasma Cutter in Dead Space 2. File:DS2 - Plasma Cutter Promo01.jpg|The Plasma Cutter collectible item for Dead Space 2. dead_space_plasma_cutter.jpg|Close-up of the Plasma Cutter. full-plasma_ammo.png|Plasma energy 167620_190992494264153_100000602107446_648813_7054349_n.jpg|life size replica dead space 2 plasma cutter. Dead-Space-Plasma-Cutter-1.jpg|link=211-V Plasma Cutter Video thumb|left|300px|Dead Space gameplay with the plasma cutter Notes Sources